Category: Seeing Sustainability

Selling Food In Styrofoam

styrofoam

By Niklas van der Wagt

UCLA Carbon Neutrality Ambassadors

The intersection between the COVID-19 pandemic and sustainability is as interesting as it is complicated. One easily identifiable symptom of the pandemic is the decline of sit-in dining at restaurants and other locations, which has lead to increased popularity of pick up and fast food. Of course, this also means more single-use containers used for food.

Even before ‘COVID-19’ was a household term, UCLA was (and still is) committed to being an entirely styrofoam-free campus. Among materials commonly used for food packaging, styrofoam stands out thanks to its low weight, high efficiency, and the threats it poses to general health and the environment.

Many people seem to believe that styrofoam is not great for the environment, but nonetheless a step up from plastic. In reality, the opposite is true; styrofoam is not biodegradable and generally cannot be recycled. On the other hand, many plastics are recyclable.

Astute Bruins will notice that the food containers used at Rendezvous and other on-campus dining locations are not made of styrofoam, but of a more environmentally friendly, compostable material. By implementing strategies such as this one, UCLA hopes to be a styrofoam-free campus and contribute to the greater movement of sustainability. However, individual student choices are still the deciding factor for what comes in and out of the university. In early 2020, I helped out in a Powell trash sort, at which we did exactly what the name implies. After sorting through too many bags full of trash to count, I was surprised at the amount of single-use styrofoam and plastics we sorted. I was also surprised to find books, reusable water bottles, and a lot of puff bars, but that’s not the point.

Clearly, these single-use materials are coming from places outside of UCLA. While indulging in some delicious orange chicken served in a styrofoam box from Panda Express does not make you a bad person, gratuitous use of these harmful materials is a danger to public health and the environment. If you have the option (more often than not, we do!), try to avoid styrofoam and other single-use food containers.

Coronavirus and Climate Change

By James Evans

UCLA Health Sustainability Programs Manager

My friends and colleagues alike know I spend most of my free time in the mountains rock climbing. This past weekend, in the time it took to climb Fairview Dome in Tuolumne, the skies turned from bluebird to apocalyptic as the wind blew in dark smoke from several wildfires. My holiday weekend plans, like those of many others, were abruptly cut short as the smoke engulfed the Sierras from Sequoia to Mono Lake and beyond.

California just set an alarming new record for acres burned at over 2 million and counting. Los Angeles County recorded its highest temperature ever over the weekend: 121 degrees. Many of our state’s national forests are temporarily closed, and one of my colleagues’ home has been reduced to ash. Other states are experiencing extreme weather as well. In 48 hours, Colorado set records for both heat and snow, and as we enter the heavy part of hurricane season, 16 named storms have already ravaged the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. NOAA predicts 25 named storms, an amount they’ve never forecast before.

It’s never been clearer that climate change is happening right now. Not in 2030, or 2050, or 2100. Now. Although it is expected we will see a welcomed temporary decrease in carbon emissions in 2020 due to the global pandemic, a new study has shown that both Arctic and Antarctic sea ice melting rates now match the IPCC’s worst-case scenario for global warming. The new-normal is hot, getting hotter, and our emissions reductions must become permanent and then continue declining. A return to business-as-usual once our economy recovers appears to now mean returning to our worst-case scenario, which comes with consequences that will need to be re-evaluated as well.

Just as the climate crisis exacerbates all of the social, economic, and racial inequalities currently being discussed in the national conversation on environmental justice, coronavirus also accentuates the poor health and economic conditions of underserved populations. We know that poor air quality from fossil fuels and ash can lead to pulmonary and cardiovascular morbidities, which also increases the likelihood that these patient populations could suffer severe symptoms if they contract the virus. We know that minority populations are affected disproportionately by coronavirus and climate change alike. And we also know a hotter world increases the likelihood we will see more, yes more, pandemics similar to, or potentially even worse than the one we’re currently fighting.

Healthcare professionals are consistently ranked as being the most respected by the public, and just as they have more than stepped up to meet their responsibility to society during the ongoing pandemic, they must also step up to be advocates for our patients and communities as leaders and experts on the connection between environmental health and human health. I cannot think of better example than our masks filtering out both ash and pathogens at the same time. We must act on the climate emergency with the same urgency that we have during this crisis, and demand our elected officials do the same, because unfortunately the human cost of not doing so will be far greater than what we’re currently experiencing.

COVID-19, BLM, and Environmental Racism

By Devon Bhakta

UCLA Carbon Neutrality Ambassador

“That’s probably not healthy,” I remember thinking as I looked up at the crop duster flying low over my head, dispensing pesticides out onto the fields across the street from my house. At such a young age, I couldn’t even begin to comprehend the ramifications of those pesticides on local air and water quality and the health of the migrant farmworkers who were inhaling this toxic rain of pesticides.

Growing up in a small farm town in California’s Central Valley, I never could’ve imagined such a concept as ‘environmental racism’, yet I had been living in a hotbed of it for most of my life. Despite California being hailed as one of the most sustainable states, the Valley is full of pollution that disproportionately impacts low-income minority communities. The Central Valley has some of the most heavily polluted groundwater in the country, filled with nitrates, heavy metals, and agricultural runoff that cause numerous health conditions, and those who are most affected by it are poor and rural Latinx communities. These communities also suffer at higher rates from respiratory and heart diseases as a result of having some of the worst air pollution in the country. It wasn’t until I enrolled at UCLA that I learned about how much environmental pollution there is around my hometown and how it disproportionately affects low-income people of color—and that’s precisely why it’s so important to discuss these issues and educate those who may not know about it. Throughout California and the rest of the U.S., low-income communities of color are hit hardest by pollution, which is often overlooked in discussions of sustainability.

Now more than ever, the concept of environmental justice must become a central pillar of sustainability. With the growing Black Lives Matter movement, environmental racism is being discussed as one of the systemic injustices that people of color face. Air pollution is one of the worst of these injustices for the Black community; research shows that white people inhale 17% less air pollution than they emit, whereas Black people inhale 56% more than they emit. This has implications for the effects of COVID-19 on people of color. Higher levels of air and water pollution lead to higher levels of preexisting health conditions like asthma and cancer among people of color, which in turn makes them more at risk of severe complications from COVID-19. According to the CDC, Indigenous, Black, and Latinx people have a COVID-19 hospitalization rate approximately 5 times that of white people. Nationwide, Black people are dying at 2.5 times the rate that white people are, with Indigenous and Latinx people dying at the next highest rates. More and more, the data is showing that COVID-19 is not just a health crisis, but an environmental justice crisis as well.

Environmental racism is not a new issue, but one that has been pervasive in the U.S. for many decades. Addressing these systemic inequities needs to be a fundamental part of the environmental movement going forward.

Watch and Learn

By Nikita Sridhar, Niklas van der Wagt, and Samantha Smithies

UCLA Carbon Neutrality Ambassadors

Bored at home? So were we… Until we realized that we could learn more about sustainability and the climate crisis all from the safety of our homes. Below are four highlights of our quarantine screening.

“Free Solo” – While not directly a sustainability/conservation related documentary, we find that documentaries such as “Free Solo” which are about the natural world and the intimate connection humans have with it inspires a call to action to protect the planet. Alex Honnold is a world renowned rock climber who scales terrifyingly dangerous rock faces like El Capitan in Yosemite with absolutely no equipment whatsoever. Alex’s story is so captivating because it demonstrates a raw connection with the natural world, so potent it motivates him to put his life on the line (which is ironic, as free soloists are known for not using lines!). Stream “Free Solo” on Hulu.

“The Game Changers” – Rather than taking on a clearly environmental or animal rights viewpoint, “The Game Changers” examines the benefits of a vegan diet from a health and performance angle. The documentary follows former UFC fighter James Wilks and his transition to a plant-based diet after being injured. As students who already eat almost entirely plant-based, the film pushed us to move further toward a fully vegan diet. While it motivated us, we found that “The Game Changers” was particularly motivational for our family and friends who didn’t initially recognize the advantages of plant-based diets, especially for those who view eating meat as tied to masculinity. While the film’s science and statistics have been brought under question, the message is still executed in an entertaining and effective way. Stream “The Game Changers” on Netflix.

“The Invisible Vegan” – Sometimes finding movies can be pricey and time-consuming, but this homemade series can be found on YouTube (for free) and is perfect for those willing to learn about the intersection between diet and environment. This series in particular helped us understand what veganism is and isn’t. The word ‘vegan’ implies a lot more than its definition in today’s world, so taking some time to learn about what it means to have a plant-based diet in our society was eye-opening. Topics include health, environment, stereotypes, cost, and more!

2017 Isaac Asimov Memorial Debate: De-Extinction – The Natural History Museum has yearly debates on pressing questions at the frontier of science and innovation. While this may sound like prescribed viewing for your Astrophysics class, watching 2017’s debate was such an enjoyable yet informative experience. Neil DeGrasse Tyson moderated this debate with scientists including UCLA’s very own professor, Beth Shapiro (Go Bruins!), about de-extinction. Bringing back mammoths to North America to restore the ecology sounds like something straight out of a sci-fi novel… but will it be a future we live to see?

New Quick Tips YouTube Video

By Sam Smithies

UCLA Carbon Neutrality Ambassador

UCLA Carbon Neutrality Initiative Ambassadors, Sonia Aronson, Devon Bhakta, and Avishek Ghosh just released a new YouTube video with quick tips on how to lower your carbon footprint as a UCLA student!

UC Fully Divested from Fossil Fuels

UC Regents Divest

By Sam Smithies

UCLA Carbon Neutrality Ambassador

On May 19, 2020, the University of California became the largest educational system in the United States to divest from fossil fuels and shift toward renewable energy such as solar and wind power. Over a five year period, the UC Investments Committee achieved a fully fossil-fuel free portfolio, including the endowment, the pension and all working capital pools. Meanwhile, the UC Investments have exceeded their five-year goal of investing $1 billion dollars toward clean energy projects. These changes were motivated by the UC’s recognition of their environmental and social responsibilities, however, ultimately, the investment strategies respond to the financial risk of continuing to invest in fossil fuels.

The UC Investments’ ESG (environmental, social, and governance) policy, released in 2015, outlines the ways in which environmental and social trends and challenges can pose financial risks. Rather than a guiding value, sustainability is considered in risk assessment and due diligence.

Read the UC Sustainable investment framework

While there was significant internal support, the UC’s divestment has been made possible by committed student and faculty advocates and the Fossil-Fuel Free UC campaign. Across the nation and the world, going fossil-fuel free has become a growing trend among universities and other large institutions. Unity College was the first school to have a fossil-fuel free portfolio in 2011. Since then, many other universities have reached this milestone or are working toward it. In the last 5 years, over 1000 global institutions, totaling nearly $8 trillion USD, have pledged to divest from fossil fuels.

The UC’s fossil fuel free portfolio sends a symbolic message and will have an indirect environmental impact, but sadly, it alone won’t make a big difference. The hope is that the UC’s policy furthers the nationwide movement of universities and other large institutions divesting from fossil fuels.

Phasing Out Single-Use Plastics

By Nikita Sridhar

UCLA Carbon Neutrality Ambassador

Announced January 24th, UCLA has released a draft policy to phase out single-use plastic beginning July of this year. First thing they’re tackling: “food accessory” items, like plastic utensils, cup lids, bowls, and plastic bags.


Having UCLA, a premier public higher education system, act as a trailblazer for the movement will set an important example to other universities and legislative bodies alike. When presented with a plastic spoon or fork, even students who are environmentally conscious may slip up in favor of the convenience of these items.

Institutionally changing infrastructure surrounding single-use plastics is vital in ensuring sustainable solutions are accessible to all.

If you haven’t yet, check out this episode from the UCLA x Vox Climate Lab series to learn more about how detrimental and pervasive the effects of single-use plastics are, and other ways you can do your part and go green!